Comments on: Trouble in North Carolina

By: Debbie Wiley

Debbie Wiley — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:58:13 +0000

It’s “valley of humility between two peaks of arrogance” or at least that is what someone once told me on a amtrak train.

By: overmatik

overmatik — Thu, 27 May 2010 10:37:47 +0000

“Free lunch? I think that it was eaten somewhere else by somebody else.”

That’s exactly the point. Do I really need to point out who ate your lunches?

[AL: I just had a free lunch. It was very tasty.]

By: sidney

sidney — Wed, 26 May 2010 14:15:46 +0000

It seems to me the comment was directed not at the South in general, but at South Carolina. Southerners are so touchy, though. They’re so used to people outside the South making fun of their accents and lynch mobs that anything sets them off. Flying that Confederate flag at the state capitol makes South Carolina look like a state of unregenerate bigots, no matter how many intelligent and kind people there might be there.

By: Picard

Picard — Wed, 26 May 2010 09:52:35 +0000

I’m from the south and I thought it was mildly humorous.

By: Southern Librarian

Southern Librarian — Wed, 26 May 2010 08:59:32 +0000

Well, that was offensive and bigoted to the South. People who live in glass houses and all that. I suppose I could forgive you if it was funny but alas it wasn’t.

By: Michigan J Frog, Librarian

Michigan J Frog, Librarian — Wed, 26 May 2010 08:55:11 +0000

Um, what free lunch did libraries get in the last decade(s)?

I must have missed something. In the last decade(s), I have seen my budget spiral downward (in real dollars), my staff slashed, and my duties increase.

Free lunch? I think that it was eaten somewhere else by somebody else.

By: overmatik

overmatik — Wed, 26 May 2010 08:31:29 +0000

The danger I see with this budget cutting process is that we will be depriving people from accessing libraries in a time which they need them the most. The response for the excessive taxation is fiscal responsibility, America has had too many free lunches in the last decades. I’m sorry, but the party is over!

By: Been There, Done That

Been There, Done That — Tue, 25 May 2010 19:42:55 +0000

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.
Not all budget cuts to libraries are bad. A cut is a good opportunity to trim the deadwood – the low-use library branch in the disappearing neighborhood that couldn’t be closed for political reasons; an opportunity to honestly access jobs that may no longer be needed, and to redesign services.
Slamming South Carolina libraries is a slam on southern libraries and reveals the ethnocentric bias of AL. Our new director belittled our southern MLIS degrees compared to his Midwest and California credentials, despite the fact that our libraries are innovative, well used, maintained, and fiscally sound. He had come from the California budget crisis and couldn’t believe we had funds in reserve to finish our tax cycle.
Regarding Tea Party – this is not in its purest form about conservatism or Republicans. If you believe that, you are buying the spin of news organizations. This is about taxation without representation – our elected representatives consistently favor the interests of large corporations over the interests of citizens. We need to vote out all incumbents regardless of party affiliation. BTW, real Tea Party people don’t care about your sexual orientation, religion or nation of origin.
If you want to get an idea about how government really works read “Parliament of Whores” by P.J. O’Rourke. I’ve been through 2 hurricanes, fixing to go through an oil spill, and know first-hand the impossibility of the “government” running anything efficiently or fairly. Anyone who thinks otherwise is incredibly naïve and will probably only learn by the hardest that government lackeys do not have the wisdom of Solomon and don’t particularly care about you and your problems. A good example for librarians is working with the federal erate program. (How many forms do you want to fill out?)

By: Librariman

Librariman — Tue, 25 May 2010 14:10:47 +0000

I stopped reading this after the insulting [i]paragraph[/i] about SC libraries. Having worked for one of the most used libraries for ten years and having been an even longer patron to them, I was a little suprised. I suppose it is meant to be funny. Well good show. Use prejudice and generalizations for the sake of a laugh. No one has done [i]that[/i] before.

[AL: I find it amusing that you bother to tell me when you stopped reading. If you didn't read the post, then you really have nothing relevant to say about it. Continue flying your Confederate flag with pride!]

By: Corporate Devil

Corporate Devil — Tue, 25 May 2010 14:00:08 +0000

The WPA made a lasting impact by supporting the arts in a time of economic strife. Many have concluded that the cultural efforts of those times were a lifeline to people, and at minimum documented the struggle of the times. All the more reason to up government investment now for museums and libraries. I wish I heard more arguments defending libraries that consider the cultural impacts of these institutions. Support them why? Because they are innately good and given particularly well to assessment. The IMLS certainly has done a poor job with their outcomes based program. Well I’m being paged back to work.